Practising Innovation in Public Sector Procurement: Mobilising the Power of Local Spending – East Birmingham Inclusive Growth Strategy
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Mobilising the Power of Local Spending – East Birmingham Inclusive Growth Strategy
Authors
Conrad Parke
Centre for Local Economic Strategies (CL
The city of Birmingham is using public procurement to address its socioeconomic challenges and make its local economy more equitable. In this research brief, “Mobilising the Power of Local Spending – East Birmingham Inclusive Growth Strategy (Part 2),” Conrad Parke from the Centre for Local Economic Strategies (CLES) builds on the work outlined in the previous brief, “Working with the Anchor Institutions (Part 1),” to examine the practical application of innovative procurement strategies.
As the coordinator of the Birmingham Anchor Network, Conrad has been working closely with procurement managers and officers from the Network partners, and this brief captures lessons and insights from their collaborative efforts to foster inclusive growth in East Birmingham.
The previous brief (Working with the Anchor Institutions. Research brief no. 11/2024 – 4) introduced the concept of anchor institutions—large public sector organisations with substantial local influence—as key players in driving economic inclusivity and highlighted the barriers to embedding social value in procurement. This brief (Mobilising the Power of Local Spending – East Birmingham Inclusive Growth Strategy. Research brief no. 11/2024 – 5) focuses on the implementation of these ideas in East Birmingham, an area with significant socioeconomic challenges and a local economy dominated by micro-enterprises.
Through initiatives such as hyper-local spending, simplifying procurement processes for smaller contracts, and fostering direct connections between anchor institutions and local businesses, the Birmingham Anchor Network is piloting approaches to address these barriers. This brief highlights the practical challenges encountered, the innovative solutions being tested, and the potential for these efforts to transform public procurement into a tool for equitable economic growth. This brief also offers an understanding of the practical application of procurement strategies, showcasing their potential to support local businesses, create jobs, and build resilient communities.
Key Points from the Brief:
- Socioeconomic Challenges in East Birmingham: Despite Birmingham’s overall economic growth, East Birmingham faces significant challenges, including high unemployment, widespread deprivation, and a business landscape dominated by micro-enterprises with fewer than nine employees. These issues underscore the need for targeted procurement strategies to foster inclusive growth.
- Challenges in Procurement Practices: The brief identifies institutional barriers, such as cost-driven decision-making, risk aversion, and resource limitations, which hinder small businesses from accessing opportunities within public sector supply chains.
- Hyper-Local Spending Initiatives: The Birmingham Anchor Network is piloting approaches to direct procurement opportunities toward businesses in specific neighbourhoods, aligning public spending with local economic needs.
- Simplifying Procurement Processes: Efforts are being made to reduce the complexity and burden of procurement processes for smaller contracts, enabling micro-enterprises and social enterprises to participate more effectively.
- Building Business-Institution Connections: The initiative emphasises fostering relationships between anchor institutions and local businesses through “Meet the Buyer” events and sharing local business intelligence to increase engagement.
- Enterprise Support Initiative: Funded by the Shared Prosperity Fund, this 14-month project focuses on testing innovative procurement solutions while providing targeted support to local businesses to help them navigate public procurement processes.
- Challenges in Procurement Practices: The brief identifies institutional barriers, such as cost-driven decision-making, risk aversion, and resource limitations, which hinder small businesses from accessing opportunities within public sector supply chains.
- Testing Collaborative Solutions: The Network is experimenting with strategies like shared procurement needs across institutions, import replacement, and progressive ideas such as breaking down large contracts into smaller, more accessible “lots.”
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Practising Innovation in Public Sector Procurement
Authors
Conrad Parke
Centre for Local Economic Strategies (CLES)
As the Co-ordinator of the Birmingham Anchor Network, Conrad has been working with the procurement managers and officers from each of the Network partners, and the following two briefs will capture some of the learning from this experience:
Part 1: Working with the Anchor Institutions
The first brief (Working with the Anchor Institutions. Research brief no. 11/2024 – 4) introduces the concept of anchor institutions—major public sector entities with substantial local influence—as catalysts for economic inclusivity, highlighting the potential benefits of innovative procurement in Birmingham. The brief explains how standard public sector procurement practice needs to change and, in particular, innovate if the potential of public sector spend is to be truly unlocked for greater economic benefit.
Part 2: Mobilising the Power of Local Spending – East Birmingham Inclusive Growth Strategy – coming next week
The second brief (Mobilising the Power of Local Spending – East Birmingham Inclusive Growth Strategy. Research brief no. 11/2024 – 5) will delve into the practical application of the Anchor Institutions within East Birmingham, the city area facing significant socioeconomic challenges. The brief outlines some of the practical barriers and the innovative procurement approaches they are now trying to introduce.
Together, these two pieces underscore the transformative potential of innovative procurement policies in supporting small local businesses, fostering job creation, and distributing economic growth more equitably. These two pieces provide valuable insights into the policy framework and the practical hurdles of embedding social value in public procurement.
Key Points from the First Brief
- Anchor Institutions as Economic Catalysts: Anchor institutions, such as universities, hospitals, and local authorities, are positioned as significant economic drivers capable of fostering local growth by prioritising spending with local businesses and SMEs.
- Birmingham Anchor Network’s Approach: In Birmingham, the Anchor Network is piloting a collaborative response to the Procurement Act, aiming to develop a consistent approach to make it easier for SMEs to engage in procurement opportunities. This collective response includes defining shared barriers and coordinated solutions across anchor institutions.
- Barriers to Innovative Procurement: The brief highlights barriers to innovative procurement, such as procurement processes heavily focused on compliance, cost-saving priorities, and risk aversion, often excluding smaller, local businesses from participating.
- Lessons from the Past and Future Directions: The brief reflects on lessons from the Public Services (Social Value) Act 2012, emphasising the need for clear, unified approaches to avoid market fragmentation and genuinely supporting local enterprises with social value missions.
- The Role of the 2023 Procurement Act: The Procurement Act is seen as an opportunity to encourage innovative procurement practices, emphasising local economic benefits and reducing barriers for small businesses. However, the Act’s vague language may lead to varied interpretations, creating inconsistencies across institutions.
Download the full publication below.
Practising Innovation in Public Sector Procurement: Working with the Anchor Institutions
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Transparency on the reporting of public procurement information
Authors
Maria Fernanda Ibarra Gutierrez
University of Manchester
Dr. Luis Ospina-Forero
University of Manchester
Prof. Elvira Uyarra
University of Manchester
With the public sector spending £400Bn per annum, and the need to deliver more for less across local, regional and national government, the need to better understand how money is being spent is absolutely necessary for reasons such as:
• Procurement markets and trends monitoring: Governments can describe spending and time trends, and compare performance across entities, regions, contract types, etc.
• Data-driven procurement policy-making: Governments can assess efficiency gaps to identify areas for reform, monitor the impact of new policies, and understand potential trade-offs of different strategies.
• Transparency and accountability: Civil society can monitor the procurement system.
Another important aspect is to understand where the opportunities for innovation lie through identifying where procurement-powered innovation has created new value, whether it’s through open innovation challenge calls or other means. Owing to the challenges around reporting, this has proven to be a challenge.
IPEC Research, a centre funded by the Innovation Procurement Empowerment Centre, commissioned a paper through experts from the University of Manchester to identify some key barriers affecting the transparency of public procurement information in the UK, including data quality issues such as lack of unique identifiers, duplicated records, inconsistent dates, and missing data fields.
The paper makes the argument that improvements in data collection, quality, and availability in public procurement is important to support accountability, transparency and to inform policy reform.
The authors found three main challenges:
- No central repository to publish a call (there are several) with inconsistent recording periods.
- Many fields are left blank by the buyers.
- The procurement data doesn’t provide an end-to-end flow from pre-information to contract award and expenditure.
The report suggests that it is important to improve the collection, compilation, quality, storage and availability of procurement information. The authors argue that the Act will address some of the problems mentioned in the report. For instance, there will be a platform for suppliers to register and store their details to avoid having different names for the same suppliers. Also, there are plans in the Act to join into a single database the information to centralise procurement data.
Download the full publication below.
Transparency on the reporting of public procurement information: lessons from handling compiled procurement information
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Leveraging Public Procurement to Drive Local Innovation
In an era of complex societal challenges and rapid technological advancement, governments are constantly seeking innovative ways to address public needs and stimulate economic growth.
Authors
Dr Chloe Billing
Research Fellow at the University of Birmingham
In an era of complex societal challenges and rapid technological advancement, governments are constantly seeking innovative ways to address public needs and stimulate economic growth. One powerful yet often overlooked tool at their disposal is public procurement. With public expenditure on goods and services accounting for 10-15% of GDP in OECD countries, strategic use of this purchasing power has the potential to catalyse groundbreaking solutions and drive innovation across various sectors.
This research briefing investigates the intersection between public procurement and innovation policy. The study explores how governments can harness their buying power to not only meet immediate needs but also foster a culture of innovation in the private sector. By acting as lead customers, catalysing new solutions, and employing strategic procurement techniques, public authorities can create a ripple effect of innovation that extends far beyond the initial purchase.
The research examines several key aspects of innovation-driven procurement, including:
- Theoretical foundations and real-world evidence supporting procurement as an innovation policy instrument
- Factors influencing procurement’s impact on innovation, including scale, technical capacity, and political considerations
- International case studies showcasing successful implementation across sectors like healthcare, energy, and transport
- The role of emerging technologies in enabling more transparent, efficient, and innovative procurement practices
- An analysis of the UK’s new Procurement Act as an opportunity to embed innovation in public purchasing
The work also highlights the challenges faced in realising procurement’s full potential as an innovation driver. From risk aversion to fragmented budgets, the study offers insights into overcoming these barriers and provides recommendations for policymakers and public sector leaders.
As we navigate an increasingly complex world, the strategic use of public procurement presents a unique opportunity to address pressing societal needs whilst simultaneously fostering innovation and economic growth. This research offers in-depth analysis and recommendations for harnessing public procurement as a catalyst for innovation.
Leveraging Public Procurement to Drive Local Innovation
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Public Procurement of Innovation: Impacts, Evidence, and Methodological challenges
Public procurement, representing around 12% of GDP in OECD countries, is increasingly recognised as a powerful tool for driving not only innovation but also broader goals like sustainability and economic development.
Authors
Dr. Oishee Kundu
University of Manchester
Prof. Elvira Uyarra
University of Manchester
Public procurement, representing around 12% of GDP in OECD countries, is increasingly recognised as a powerful tool for driving not only innovation but also broader goals like sustainability and economic development.
This research brief synthesises research findings on the impacts of PPI, looking at both theoretical and empirical evidence, as well as methodological challenges in studying its effects.
Public procurement has the potential to shape innovation by:
- Creating demand for new technologies and services (demand-pull effects).
- Facilitating the diffusion of innovations.
- Encouraging firm-level investment in R&D.
- Influencing market structures to support new products and innovations.
Studying PPI involves several complexities, including:
- Defining what constitutes innovation-oriented procurement.
- Establishing clear causality between procurement actions and innovation outcomes.
- Addressing issues related to data access and transparency.
Further research should aim to:
- Improve data collection and linkages.
- Focus on long-term impacts. Explore the effects of PPI across different regions and sectors.
Download the full publication below.
Public Procurement of Innovation: Impacts, Evidence, and Methodological challenges
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Navigating public sector procurement
Procurement in the public sector can be a challenging landscape, especially when introducing innovative technologies.
At a recent panel discussion co-organised by IPEC and Digital Leaders, experts shared valuable insights on overcoming these challenges and driving successful outcomes.
Effective governance is key to fostering innovation. Elizabeth Vega OBE, Group CEO of Informed Solutions, highlighted that governance should be agile and adaptive, supporting decision-making processes that prioritise outcomes over rigid procedures. This approach encourages transparency and collaboration, as demonstrated by her organisation’s practice of keeping key subcontractors visible to the client. “Governance should be an enabler, not a blocker,” she noted, emphasising the importance of flexibility in governance structures.
A crucial element of innovation is creating a culture where diverse perspectives are welcomed. Elizabeth emphasised the importance of an environment where “people feel safe to express their beliefs in a constructive way,” allowing for respectful yet challenging discussions that can lead to real change. She added, “Innovation thrives where there’s psychological safety, enabling people to question the status quo without fear.”
Demonstrating value through case studies is another essential strategy. Elizabeth noted that while a single case study might not cover all bases, multiple case studies can collectively highlight relevant aspects of a solution, reducing perceived risks and showcasing capabilities to potential clients. “It’s not about one perfect case study; it’s about a portfolio that tells the full story,” she explained.
Flora McFarlane, Head of Growth & Partnerships at VivaCity, shared her approach to overcoming challenges by securing early adopters who are eager to innovate, such as Oxfordshire and TfL. These cornerstone clients played a critical role in validating their technology, making it easier for more risk-averse clients to consider adoption. Flora stressed the importance of understanding procurement teams’ needs and constraints, and working closely with them to navigate obstacles. “We had to be patient and persistent, demonstrating our value in every conversation,” she said, highlighting the importance of perseverance in the public sector landscape.
Darren Kelly, Central Government Capture Lead for UK Public Sector at Amazon Web Services (AWS), highlighted the need for early engagement and education to align procurement teams with the specific solutions being considered. He pointed out, “The procurement manager is an expert in the procurement process and not necessarily an expert on what they’re buying,” underscoring the value of clear communication and collaboration early in the procurement cycle. Darren also stressed, “If you engage early, you get to shape the conversation. It’s all about building trust and educating the buyer about your solution.”
The new Procurement Act 2023 offers opportunities for more flexible frameworks, which could greatly benefit both suppliers and buyers. Darren noted that open frameworks extending up to eight years can provide the flexibility needed to accommodate evolving technologies like AI and cloud services, allowing for new suppliers to be added as needs change. “These longer frameworks allow for a dynamic marketplace that can evolve with technology, rather than being locked into outdated solutions,” he commented.
Legal insights from Jenny Beresford-Jones and Shailee Howard from Mills & Reeve, added another layer of strategic advice. Jenny stressed the importance of staying updated with legal changes to gain a strategic advantage, while Shailee highlighted the value of not just meeting legal requirements but strategically planning engagement with the procurement process to maximise opportunities for innovation. Shailee noted, “Understanding the legal landscape isn’t just about compliance; it’s about leveraging the rules to create better opportunities.”
The discussion also touched on the delicate balance between innovation and alignment with organisational goals. Elizabeth suggested techniques such as empowering individuals to speak up, building skills alongside implementing solutions, and maintaining regular touchpoints to monitor cultural and emotional alignment, not just compliance metrics. She summed up by saying, “It’s about ensuring that innovation aligns not just with the letter of the law but with the spirit of the organisation’s mission.”
In summary, the panellists underscored the importance of building long-term relationships, understanding the unique dynamics of public sector procurement, and consistently demonstrating value through transparent and flexible approaches. As Rikesh Shah, Head of IPEC, summed up, the key to success lies in understanding the service owner’s problems, building lasting relationships, and focusing on creating long-term value over many years through innovation.
IPEC is currently partnering with four local authorities, addressing some of the key industry challenges and helping them find solutions through innovative procurement strategies. We are keen to hear from local authorities about some of the challenges they are currently facing as they look ahead into the next year. Reach out to us at ipec@cp.catapult.org.uk
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Geofencing: innovative technology to improve trackside worker safety
Network Rail and Connected Places Catapult won the Safety Award at the Railway Industry Association’s Railway Industry Supplier Excellence awards on 29 June for their work to take forward a new piece of technology known as ‘geofencing’.
The challenge
Solution
Next steps
How Connected Places Catapult added value
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EV Charging Programme Barnet
Barnet’s EV projects overcame procurement challenges through collaboration, flexible financial models, and market engagement, leading to successful outcomes, increased charging points, and senior leadership recognition for innovative procurement strategies.
The London Borough of Barnet secured £12 million in grant funding to support four EV projects, covering 50-75% of the project costs. However, the procurement process faced innovation barriers due to the unfamiliarity of EV markets among colleagues. Challenges included tight timelines, complex procurement requirements, and concerns over contract lengths and bid scoring methods.
Challenges and solutions
- Innovation Procurement:
Collaboration with legal, finance, and procurement teams was crucial to overcome challenges in adopting new procurement approaches. Despite initial concerns over document alignment with Barnet’s contract standards, adapting the Oxford Dynamic Purchasing System (DPS) proved flexible, allowing for necessary adjustments to suit Barnet’s requirements. - Complex Requirements:
The requirement for bidders to present four different financial models and contract length of 15 year raised potential concerns about bid participation. To address this, a soft market test was conducted to gather feedback from potential bidders, leading to a consensus about 10-15 years being essential contract lengths for financial viability. Additionally, quality submissions were evaluated before financial aspects to ensure a balanced assessment. - Financial Modelling:
Collaboration with finance officers ensured a robust business case and evaluated financial aspects, enhancing confidence in project recommendations. Flexibility in funding options, including full council funding or shared investment with suppliers, allowed for adaptability based on interest rates and financial viability.
Successes
- Market Engagement:
Collaboration with internal teams and market stakeholders facilitated smooth procurement processes and aligned financial options with market preferences, resulting in successful project outcomes. - Financial Flexibility:
Adapting to changing interest rates and unexpected cost reductions allowed for optimal use of grant funding, leading to the delivery of additional charging points beyond initial estimates. - Senior Buy-In and Recognition:
Senior leadership support and nominations for awards reflected the success and impact of Barnet’s EV charging programme, demonstrating effective procurement and rollout strategies.
Conclusion
The London Borough of Barnet’s EV charging programme showcases the importance of collaboration, flexibility, and market engagement in overcoming challenges and delivering successful projects. By navigating procurement barriers, adapting financial models, and leveraging market feedback, Barnet achieved its goal of expanding EV infrastructure while ensuring cost-effectiveness and sustainability.
Key takeaways
- Collaboration with internal and external stakeholders is essential for overcoming innovation barriers in procurement.
- Flexibility in financial modeling and funding options enables adaptability to market conditions and project requirements.
- Market engagement and feedback contribute to successful procurement outcomes and project delivery.
- Effective leadership support and recognition enhance project visibility and success.
“When conducting a procurement of innovation, clarity in the Invitation to Tender (ITT) documents is paramount. Ensure that requirements are articulated with precision. By providing explicit guidance in the ITT documents, local authorities can minimise the need for extensive clarification questions and reduce the risk of bidders misunderstanding or becoming confused about the project’s requirements.”Paul Bragg, Head of Network and Infrastructure – Street Scene, London Borough of Barnet
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How SBRI helped Belfast City Council transform problem-solving
This case study explores how the Small Business Research Initiative (SBRI) model enabled Belfast City Council to innovate and transform its approach to problem-solving.
By leveraging the SBRI framework, the Council collaborated with small businesses to develop creative solutions for local challenges, driving efficiency and delivering impactful results for the community.
Business rates provide more than half of Belfast city council’s annual revenue, used to fund local services. However, with a constantly changing business community, the maintenance of an up-to-date register of businesses in the city to inform the timely and accurate collection of rates income can be challenging.
The small business research initiative
The Small Business Research Initiative (SBRI) is an approach that brings public sector challenges together with ideas from business to create innovative solutions. According to Innovate UK, the SBRI programme has brought more than £1 Billion to the UK economy with over 66% of the contracts awarded to SME’s.
Defining the challenge
In defining the challenge, Belfast focused on what outcomes they wanted to achieve, rather than defining how they wanted to achieve them. For Belfast, these outcomes included:
- expediting the issuing of bills to new properties.
- identifying occupancy status of a non-domestic property in near real time;
- ensuring that all properties required to pay rates have been identified and are valued for rates purposes;
- identifying the function/use of a non-domestic property in near real time;
- identifying the occupant of a non-domestic property in near real time; and
- expediting the issuing of bills to new properties.
Making it happen
Working with Land and Property Services, Belfast City Council applied for £100,000 of funding from the Department for the Economy to bring forward the development of a timely, accurate and cost effective solution which could be implemented to maximise business rate revenue for the city. The council contributed a further £50,000 to the funding.
To reduce risk and allow space for innovative solutions to be developed and validated, the SBRI approach allows for a multi-stage bidding, shortlisting, validation and selection process.
Phase one: the open call
The first step was running an open call that was open to any companies interested in taking part in the competition. To kick this off, the Council developed a structured plan for market engagement which included activities such as running ‘meet and greet’ sessions open to companies interested in taking part in the competition to talk to council officers about it and get prepared. The open call was then released which was publicised in the press with a competition briefing and online application.
Phase two: proof of concept
As a result of the competition, four companies were awarded £5,000 each to help turn their ideas into more substantial proofs of concept over a six-week period. These projects focused on behavioural economics, Internet of Things networks, rule-based analytics and machine learning models. Crucially, none of the firms which responded to the open call had previously considered themselves local government suppliers.
Phase three: prototyping
Two companies — Analytics Engines and NQuiring Minds — were awarded further funding of £55,000 each to turn their concepts into functional prototypes during Phase Two. This phase ran from November 2016 to March 2017.
The companies had the opportunity to trial their new solutions over a two-week period. Using different approaches, they used a range of data sources, such as from Belfast City Council, Land and Property Services and Northern Ireland Water, to enhance the process for identifying rates income from businesses in the city.
Outcomes
During the final two-week evaluation period, the two companies identified an initial £500,000 of previously uncollected business rates. Subsequent use of the winning solution has since revealed still more previously unrealised revenue which is now being used to deliver local services.
In addition to demonstrating to Belfast City Council the value of taking a challenge-based approach to procurement, the SBRI process also gave SMEs a valuable opportunity to innovate and commercialise ideas in a real-world environment.
“Our experience of working with Belfast City Council and Land & Property Services has been invaluable, and having the opportunity to work on a city challenge directly with the service end users has been incredibly rewarding. Access to data and funding allowed us to focus fully on the challenge at hand, including the development of algorithms, which gave new insights and allowed us to propose new ways of doing things. We are now promoting our solution to a range of new markets.”Analytics Engines
Since the completion of this SBRI, Belfast City Council not only moved to procure a rates maximisation solution, but expanded its use of challenge-based procurement through the creation of the Smart Belfast Framework though which they regularly publish information about problems they are looking for the market to solve.
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How Belfast is using procurement to unlock economic value
Given that a substantial proportion of Belfast City Council’s public services are funded through these local taxes, it was clear that the city needed an up-to-date register of businesses.
“Over the past decade, Belfast’s economy has become increasingly dynamic, with lots of new businesses either setting up or moving premises every month. That’s obviously good news for the city. But as a result, we’ve had great difficulty in accurately tracking which businesses should be paying rates… We needed to improve our access to up-to-date and real-time information.”Deborah Colville, Belfast City Innovation Manager and Head of the Smart Belfast programme.
A number of new approaches had been tried over the years to address the problem, but they tended to rely on slow and manual processes.
Smart Belfast
Under its Smart Belfast programme, the city launched a competition to encourage innovative companies to address the challenge. The selected companies each received £100,000 through the Northern Ireland Small Business Research Initiative which encourages businesses to bring innovation to public sector challenges.
Data scientists and other experts from the UK’s Connected Places Catapult came on board to better define the challenge and the specific outcomes the city wanted to achieve.
“We discovered that we needed to stop trying to second guess what a solution should look like, and instead focus on developing an excellent challenge definition process,” says Colville. “You need to commit to opening up your people and your data to give these businesses the chance to fully understand the complexity of the problem.”
After an open call, proof of concept and prototyping rounds, two companies – Analytics Engines and NQuiring Minds–were selected to tap into a range of data sources to help identify a solution to the challenge.
“We opened up 24 data sets across a whole range of other organisations, like Northern Ireland Water and Land and Property Services. We also provided our own council data sets such as waste collection, so we could find out if services had been accessed at particular premises,” she explains.
Half a million pounds identified
In the prototype phase the two companies identified an initial £500,000 of previously uncollected business rates, and since then, additional opportunities to collect revenue have been uncovered.
“The project really demonstrated the power of data science in helping the city to better understand a rapidly changing economy. Even ten years ago, cities could perhaps have relied on traditional methods to track such change. In the modern world this is no longer an option.”
“We’re now further developing the model to help us understand other aspects of the city, its economy and the ecology of its property market,” Colville says. “From there, we’re beginning to feed into wider city planning and decision-making, not just rates collection.”
Smart Belfast Framework
Challenge-based procurement is an integral component of the Smart Belfast Framework, first released in 2017, which established a permanent city innovation team driving innovative procurement approaches alongside traditional procurement, within the council.
“A key learning for us is the relationship between public innovation and public procurement. Right from the beginning we’ve been very aware that the public sector’s traditional approach to procurement can sometimes present a barrier to innovation, which by its nature can be difficult to predict in terms of success. So it’s very important that we work with our procurement experts in council to find ways to address these tensions.”
Since the launch of the Framework, the council’s City Innovation Team has delivered a diverse portfolio of 47 projects, leveraging funding worth over £10 million and working with over 200 SMEs and stakeholders. Projects have used a range of technology including IoT, AI, machine vision cameras, chatbots, VR and AR, satellite imagery and data analytics to tackle challenges in areas such as urban mobility, healthy living, air quality, tourism, economic development and the Covid pandemic.
The framework is also driving the development of a £120 million digital programme across the region as part of the Belfast Region City Deal, with investment in wireless infrastructure, healthy neighbourhoods, green energy and integrated mobility projects.
Removing barriers to innovation
Belfast is building on its learning to design ever more ambitious challenge fund programmes for wider societal challenges related to decarbonisation, mobility, citizen engagement and health. It is due to receive £55 million as part of the Belfast Region City Deal to support these funds in 2022.
Belfast’s innovation focus now is on its new Smart District and Innovation District – seeking to introduce digital innovation into the city and economy’s ongoing development and management from street level upwards. Essentially, it’s about the procurement of innovation.
“Procurement can be a very black and white way of looking at something in terms of customer and supplier relationship,” says Colville. “We’ve realised the best procurement should encourage a collaborative focus on outcomes – not solutionism. We’re working to harness the city’s strengths, its creativity, research and academic excellence for the long-term benefit of all our citizens.”
Connected Places Catapult launched our Challenging Procurement programme to engage with experts and representative bodies from across the public procurement ecosystem to challenge the myths surrounding public procurement, share pioneering practice, set out new pathways and outline best practice for the procurement of new and innovative solutions by the public sector. Visit our Challenging Procurement hub to learn about the support CPC can provide and discover resources which can help you procure innovation.
Sparking the innovation potential of every place
Harnessing public procurement to signal appetite for new solutions is a common trait among successful hubs of innovation. Building on our experience supporting Belfast and its regional partners, Connected Places Catapult is growing a global network of place innovation pioneers to spark the innovation potential of every place.
Join place leaders from Belfast, Bergen, Glasgow and elsewhere at the upcoming UK Innovation Places Summit to connect with others who are using public procurement and other tools to drive new economic prosperity through innovation in their areas.
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Share your council’s innovative procurement success story and inspire others across the UK to adopt transformative approaches for their communities!
